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Connect the World

Olympic Torch Enters Rio; Scare in Abu Dhabi as Emirate's Flight Catches Fire; Reports of GOP Frustration with Donald Trump's Behavior; Brazilian Doctors Attempt to Unravel Zika's Link to Microcephaly; Accusations of Chemical Attacks in Syria from Both Sides. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired August 03, 2016 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[11:00:27] LYNDA KINKADE, CNN HOST: An emergency evacuation, all passengers and crew are safe and accounted for after this Emirates plane

caught fire on landing. We're live in Dubai next to find out what happened.

Also ahead...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN CORREPSONDENT: Republican leaders and Donald Trump's own campaign staff frustrated with their candidate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: The GOP nominee's feud with the family of a fallen soldier may be the tipping for some of his supporters. More on the state of the race

coming up.

Also...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTFIED MALE: It feels great to be strong. It feels great to go and do what I want.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: We meet the Arab weightlifter who is lifting the bar for herself and other women in

the region.

Hello, I'm Lynda Kinkade. Thanks for joining us. We begin with a lucky escape for 300 people at Dubai airport after their flight ended in an

emergency evacuation on the runway.

The Emirates jet, which was traveling from southern India, caught fire after landing. The airline said all passengers and crew were safe and

accounted for.

One of the world's busiest airports temporarily ground to a halt after the incident. And there were a lot of questions about what went wrong. Jon

Jensen is just outside Dubai airport and joins us now live.

Jon, fortunately, no fatalities. What are you learning?

JON JENSEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lynda, the latest news is that after some six hours, the Dubai international airport is back up and running.

Just in the past 20 or 25 minutes we've seen a number of planes take off and land, which is going to make a lot of passengers that we saw earlier in

the terminal at Dubai very happy that their planes may actually start taking off, which leaves the big question right now, what actually happened

to emirates 521 on the runway here about six hours ago.

We know that looking at social images the plane skidded on the runway and we have seen the

thick black plumes of smoke, at one point a bright orange fireball on the plane.

But if you look closer, you will also notice that the undercarriage appears to be missing from the plane. So, where was the landing gear? Did it

collapse as the plane came down, or was of the not down when it landed we still don't know. But there is a press conference within the hour that we

are going to follow and try to get more information from.

Meanwhile, the UAE, civil aviation authority and Emirates have opened an investigation into

this to find out just what happened to this plane.

KINKADE: Jon, what do we know about the conditions? What were they like in Dubai at

the time of the crash?

JENSEN: Well, Lynda, it was hot earlier today. It is a typical august day in Dubai. Earlier today I looked at my phone...

KINKADE: I think we've just lost the connection there to John Jensen there.

But we do have our CNN aviation correspondent Richard Quest joining us also. He is joining us via Skype from Sydney.

Richard, just looking at those images, what do you think is most likely to have caused this

fire as the plane came in to land?

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the fire itself probably was caused by the friction as the plane's underbelly met the

runway. And that would have generated a lot of sparks, and parts of the plane may have fallen off. We have already see from some of the video that

the right engine has become disengaged from the aircraft.

So that would have been the immediate cause of the fire. And then of course as the other parts of the plane broke off, the fire -- you get that

explosion, which blows part of the wing away.

Now, as to the reason that the plane came down and then crashed in the first place, we don't

know. As John alluded to, the first question is whether or not the plane came down, skidded to have runway, the nose or the main gear collapsed.

And that was the incident.

Or, as is widely being reported in aviation circles, was the landing gear not down? Was the plane attempting to do a go around or an aborted

landing? There is rumors that air traffic control had authorized the plane to climb again to 4,000 feet, but the plane was unable to gain power

sufficiently fast enough.

Now that would be born out, for example, Lynda, by those very hot conditions that you talk about.

It does take those turbo fan engines longer to spool up to takeoff power in 50 degrees heat. It is a simple fact of physics. We just don't know at

the moment. I would expect very rapidly, very clearly that we will get an indication what happened here.

Was it a case of gear collapsing on landing or some other technical issue or did the plane attempt to abort its landing and then fell foul.

[11:05:42] KINKADE: There are certainly quite dramatic pictures we are looking at, Richard. Incredibly, everyone made it out safely. Just how

quickly can an airline evacuate passengers in a case like this?

QUEST: The law and the rules and the international regulations require it to be done in 90 seconds with half the doors inoperable. Now you can see

why you need to have half the doors inoperable. If you look at, this you certainly don't want people to be opening the doors on the wing side where

the fire is.

And then you have also got this question that the plane tilted because the engine had fallen, and therefore some of the slides on one side of the

aircraft, although they would operate, would not be usable.

So it's very much a hard and fast rule about the amount of time. And, indeed, when a new plane is certified, one of the most dramatic test is

watching them, you know, try and get all the passengers out in 90 seconds. If you can't do it, you don't get your certification.

What we have here is obviously a first class example, at least it seems at the moment, of a

well-structured, well-managed, well-organized evacuation. And on the part of the airport getting the fire trucks there is to extinguish the fire as

soon as possible.

KINKADE: Yeah, you're absolutely right, a textbook evacuation as they say.

Richard Quest great to have you with us.

And as John did mention, all flights have now resumed there in Dubai. No doubt there will be delays for some time.

Well, the Olympic torch has finally arrived in Rio despite attempts by protesters to disrupt and route and extinguish the flame. Have a look at

this.

Having a look at pictures of sailors carrying the torch via boat through the Guanabara Bay before handing it over the Rio's mayor.

Runners will now carry the torch throughout Rio. The torch will makes its last stop at the Maracana Stadium for Friday's opening ceremony.

We are covering all the angles in the lead-up to the games. Word on which Russian athletes will be allowed to participate in competition could, of

course, come any day now.

So, we're keeping a close eye on that.

World Sport's Amanda Davies joins me now from Rio. And Matthew Chance is awaiting the IOC's decision on the Russian athletes from Moscow.

Before we get to the doping allegations, Amanda, just give us a sense of the scene as the torch made its way via boat and into the city.

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yeah, Lynda, the Rio mayor, Eduardo Paez, had said that he really wanted the arrival of the torch here in Rio to be

the moment where the people here in Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro start to feel and get behind the Olympic spirit. It hasn't certainly been the easiest of

build up to an Olympic games, has it?

And it does seem to be something of a sense of that happening here. This is a torch that has

traveled across Brazil, crisscrossed the country since May 3 with a whole host of people carrying it in 200 meter sections, of course, our very own

Arwa Damon and Shasta Darlington amongst them.

But it hasn't been an easy passage. People have really used the torch relay as a moment to make their feelings known about the economic, the

political situation here in Rio, but there has been a call for tomorrow, Thursday, to be a public holiday here really, again, to help the

celebrations,to help the positives shrine through here, the mayor wanting to celebrate Rio and Brazil and to put it forward in the best possible

light.

This torch relay arriving in the city is generally the start of the final countdown to the opening ceremony, which of course takes place on Friday

night. But as has become tradition with the football tournaments, because of the number of teams and matches involved, they actually get underway

ahead of that.

The women's football tournament gets underway today. We have all 12 of the teams playing, amongst them, the hosts, Brazil. The women's team not with

the pressure of the men, certainly, but there is high hopes of a possible gold medal if they can get past the might of the defending champions,

looking for a fourth gold in a row, that of course the USA.

But of course Lynda we are here with the action starting the countdown to the opening ceremony, and still those questions remain about which of the

Russian athletes will be allowed to compete. We are waiting for those appeal rulings from the Court of Arbitration for Sport from those

athletes who have been told by their international sporting federations that they are not eligible to compete.

We haven't heard from CASS. And the IOC is staying their statement will be released before

the opening ceremony, but we still don't know when.

[11:11:04] KINKADE: We still don't know when. It is a waiting game. Amanda Davies, thank you very much.

I want to go to Matthew Chance now.

Matthew, Russia has of course made a last-ditch plea to Olympic officials. At this stage, how many athletes have been banned and how many are in

limbo?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I mean, look, we've got several hundred Russian athletes that are already in Rio for various

disciplines of course. They have been essentially -- most of them have been cleared by their respective international sports federations. But

this three-person IOC commission has been set up to finally give the end decision on

who will compete at these Rio Olympics and who will not.

And so there is a great deal of nervousness, a great deal of anticipation. Here in Moscow, not just amongst the government of course and the sports

ministry officials that are watching this carefully, but also amongst ordinary Russians who are watching for these decisions that we're expecting

within the next few days, before, hopefully, the opening ceremony takes place on Friday night there in Rio to make clear who is going to be

competing in these Olympic games and who is not.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHANCE: The Russian team, mired in doping allegations, was greeted by cheering fans in Rio. But these welcome celebrations now seem premature.

A final decision on whether Russia will even compete at these Olympics is still to be made.

With that in mind, the head of the Russian Olympic Committee made this last-ditch appeal to

the game's organizers.

ALEXANDER ZHUKOV, RUSSIAN OLYMPIC PRESIDENT: I urge you to (inaudible) to resist this unprecedented pressure which is now on the entire Olympic

movement and not to allow this pressure to split the global Olympic family. The threat of this is greater than ever, but I believe that you will make

objective decisions, that you will first and foremost protect the rights of clean athletes and

honest athletes.

CHANCE: But it's the issue of what is a clean athlete that's at the heart of this Russian doping scandal. The allegation is that Russia hand a

state-sponsored doping program centered at this lab in Moscow, swapping urine samples and shielding athletes from positive tests.

CNN was allowed in as Russia tried to convince the world it was serious about reform. But amid growing pressure, the International Olympic

Committee stepped back, handing the decision to individual sports federations, angering critics still baying for a total ban.

THOMAS BACH, IOC PRESIDENT: This blanket ban has -- of the Russian Olympic Committee -- has been called by some the nuclear option. And the innocent

athletes would have to be considered as collateral damage, the result is death and devastation. This is not what the Olympic movement stands for.

CHANCE: But the final decision of that Olympic movement may not be announced until the eve of the Rio games. Even at this 11th hour, the

nuclear option is still on the table.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHANCE: So the issue is, you know, all of these athletes that are in Rio right now could be

theoretically sent home if that three-person commission set up by IOC decides it doesn't want to support the sports federations that have given

them the go-ahead.

The likelihood is, though, that there will be some Russian representation at these Rio games. In the past few minutes, in fact, as we have been on

the air it is been announced that the Court of Arbitration in Sports which is been reviewing some of the appeals made by

varies Russian athletes -- it's operating inside Rio at the moment for the sake of timing -- has announced that 17 Russian

rowers have had their appeals rejected and so they won't be able to compete at these Olympic games.

And so if they are already in Rio, and I think they already are, they will have to get on a plane

back.

[11:15:27] KINKADE: Matthew Chance with your finger on the pulse. Thanks for staying across that breaking news for us. Talk to you soon.

Well, meanwhile a number of athletes from around the world have chosen not compete in the

games due to fears about the Zika virus. Brazilian scientists and doctors are trying to unravel the link

between the Zika virus and the devastating birth defects.

Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When trying to solve a medical mystery, it helps to start at the beginning. And that is

why Anna Lara (ph), this adorable little girl with the eyeglasses and the too small head, may be so important. At ten months old, she is the first,

the first known child to be born with microcephaly here in Salvador, Brazil, near the epicenter of the Zika epidemic.

(on camera): One of the things...

(voice-over): Every day, her head circumference is measured. It's a frightening new ritual for thousands of parents all over Brazil. Their

hope, that their child's head will suddenly start to grow. But why Anna Lara, why Brazil and why has the northeastern coast of this country been

hit so terribly hard?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because they're perfect setup for an epidemic to occur.

GUPTA: For the past two years, neurologist Dr. Jean-Marie Olaveria Heu (ph) has walked the favelas, the slums of Salvador, searching for clues.

(on camera): In many ways, this has been an epicenter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here.

GUPTA: Why is it so bad in northeast Brazil?

DR. JAMARY OLIVEIRA FILHO, NEUROLOGIST: I think the social economic conditions are worse in this part of the country and they're more closely

packed demographically, so they have less -- less access to care, sanitary conditions are worse in this part of the country.

GUPTA (voice-over): And the nutrition is poor as well, which he believes could be a factor in microcephaly. For the mosquito that can breed in even

a bottle cap's worth of water, a favela is a Zika paradise. The disease spreads quickly here, with terrible consequences.

(on camera): And as bad as the conditions are around here, take a look down there. When it rains, all the way goes down into the valley. And, of

course, that means more mosquitoes.

Any of you guys have Zika?

(voice-over): Everyone knows about Zika here. No surprise that as hard as we looked, we saw lots and lots of kids, but not a single pregnant woman.

This boy tells me that his aunt is pregnant, but she stays inside all day using repellent.

(on camera): Did you pray?

(voice-over): This woman was lucky. Her baby is fine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, so she prayed to God and so the mosquitoes wouldn't bite her and not affect the children.

GUPTA: Many of the unlucky children never make it to the clinic set up to help those with microcephaly, their parents ashamed to be out in public

with them, never receiving the type of therapy these children are getting to stimulate their growth.

(on camera): So like the suck reflex is there.

(voice-over): This is Julia. Notice her eyes. In addition to the problems with her gaze, she also has significant sensitivity to the light and

clearly diminished vision. A clue as to where the infection is most likely to strike.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You see the brain is severely distorted.

GUPTA: Peering deep inside her brain, Doctor Jean-Marie looks for clues as well. The hope, that what they learn here will help similar babies being

born throughout the Americas.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I think with stimulation that these children are getting from the group, we see actually better outcomes than we expect from

looking at the scans.

GUPTA (on camera): That's a good grip. Oh.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Salvador, Brazil.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, still to come, Donald Trump takes on the Republican establishment yet again. His refusal to back prominent GOP leaders is

adding to growing frustrations among his own campaign staffers. Why some now feel they are wasting their time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: You're watching CNN. And this is Connect the World with me Lynda Kinkade. Welcome back.

Well, Donald Trump's presidential campaign has been controversial from the start, but he is under fire like never before from both Republicans and

Democrats.

And now even his own campaign staff is getting fed up. Sources tell CNN that Trump's staffers are increasingly frustrated by a number of

controversies taking him off message. They say some aides, including Trump's own campaign manager, feel like they are wasting their time. Trump

is locked in a very public feud with the parents of Humayun Khan, a Muslim- American army captain who was killed in Iraq.

And now a new controversy over Trump accepting a Purple Heart from a military veteran, that's a medal awarded to those wounded in combat. Have

a listen to what Trump said, and how Khan's father responded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, 2016 REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Now, I said to him -- I said to him, is that like the real one, or is that a copy? And he said,

that's my real Purple Heart. I have such confidence in you.

And i said, man, that's like -- that's like big stuff. I always wanted to get the Purple Heart. This was much easier.

KHIZR KHAN, FATHER OF HUMAYUN KHAN: Donald Trump, you had the time. You did not serve. You know what you should have done? And listen to me, and

I want his surrogates to listen to me, you should have pinned that back to that veteran's chest and should have hugged him and thanked him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, to top it all off, Trump is now taunting leaders from his own party, including the most powerful elected Republican official. He is

refusing to back House Speaker Paul Ryan in his re-election battle saying he is just not quite there yet. If that phrase

sounds familiar, it's because it is. Manu Raju reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, 2016 REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I don't regret anything. I said nice things about the son.

RAJU (voice-over): Republican leaders and Donald Trump's own campaign staff frustrated with their candidate. Sources tell CNN even Trump's

campaign manager, Paul Manafort, is upset with Trump. The tipping point: Trump openly challenging the parents of slain Muslim soldier Captain

Humayun Khan.

KHAN: This person is not fit for the office he's seeking.

RAJU: Trump refusing to drop his fight with the Gold-Star family, despite the urging of senior staff, and failing to stay on message and attacking

Hillary Clinton.

TRUMP: I was hit very hard from the stage, and you know, it's just one of those things. No, I don't regret anything.

RAJU: This as Trump refuses to endorse House Speaker Paul Ryan in his Republican primary, telling "The Washington Post," "I'm just not quite

there yet. I'm not quite there yet." Trump thumbing his nose at Ryan's delayed decision to endorse him back in May.

REP. PAUL RYAN (R-WI), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: I'm just not ready to do that at this point. I'm not there right now. RAJU: Trump also declining to back

former GOP nominee Arizona Senator

John McCain, who is in a tough re-election battle: "I've always felt that he should have done a much better job for the vets."

Trump's tension with McCain has been brewing ever since Trump criticized the war hero for being captured in Vietnam. McCain telling me back in May,

he wants Trump to apologize to POWs.

MCCAIN: When he said, "I don't like people who were captured," then there's a body of American heroes that I'd like to see him retract that statement.

RAJU: The avalanche of Trump's controversial statements prompting several prominent Republicans to break from their party and back Hillary Clinton.

President Obama used the weight of the office to slam Trump at a news conference with the foreign leader at the White House.

OBAMA: The Republican nominee is unfit to serve as president.

RAJU: And blasting Republicans for standing by their nominee.

OBAMA: If you are repeatedly having to say in very strong terms that what he has said is unacceptable, why are you still endorsing him? This isn't a

situation where you have an episodic gaffe. This is daily. And weekly, where they are distancing themselves from statements he's making.

RAJU: Trump firing back.

TRUMP: Well, he's a terrible president. He'll probably go down as the worst president in the history of our country. He's been a total disaster.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: And now Manu Raju joins us live from Washington.

Manu, just when it looked like some of the tension within the Republican Party had been put

behind them after the convention, the Khan controversy seemingly creating an even deeper divide.

RAJU: Yeah, that's right. I mean, remember after that convention Republicans went to great

lengths to show that they were united. This is a party that had been sparring for months and months

and months over that bitter primary. And they wanted to show the country that they could present a clear contrast to Hillary Clinton.

But since the Democratic convention and the Republican convention over the last two weeks, Trump has lurched from controversy to controversy. All

these distractions prompting finger-pointing within the party leading to a lot of tension, back-biting and the kind of distractions that Republican

leaders were hoping to avoid. They hope they can right the ship before November, but if this continues a lot of Republicans just simply fear for

the worst.

KINKADE: Yeah, absolutely.

And Manu, last night at a rally, a veteran gave Trump a Purple Heart. For our international viewers, just explain the significance of that. And did

Trump's response add fuel to the fire?

RAJU: It may have.

Remember, Trump has been criticized for not just his dealings with military matters and of course his fight with the gold star family, the Khans, but

also he sought multiple deferments during Vietnam even though he has criticized folks like John McCain and prisoners of war for, quote, being

captured.

Now the Purple Heart, of course, is one of the most prestigious awards that can be given to somebody in the military the after suffering wounds in

combat operations. So, when Trump, you know, sort of made light of it, it seemed, at that rally it just added some fodder that perhaps he is being a

little insensitive.

Now, the Trump allies and confidants say that's just not being fair. People are piling on. This was Trump was actually touched in this moment.

But the way he came across could certainly give some fodder for his critics.

KINKADE; Yeah, not the best response.

And of course if that wasn't all enough to deal with, Trump is refusing to support two prominent

Republicans for re-election. How do you think that is playing out behind the scenes?

RAJU: Well, Republicans are jsut not happy about that, I mean, particularly not getting behind Paul Ryan, who is of course -- went to

great lengths to support Donald Trump despite his own misgivings and tried to unite his party behind Donald Trump.

And also John McCain, who is in a very difficult re-election race and he needs Donald Trump

supporters to come out in the fall campaign against a Democratic opponent. That's not going over well.

What we have not seen, though, yet, Lynda, are Republicans revoking their endorsements of Donald Trump yet. Both Ryan and McCain are still

supporting Donald Trump. And one reason why is they do need those Donald Trump supporters to come to the polls no November, even if they are worried

that getting too close to Donald Trump could alienate from key voters, swing voters, and minority voters here in the U.S.

KINKADE: Yes, it's a tricky position for them. Manu Raju, great to have you with us. Thank you very much.

RAJU: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, live from the CNN Center, this is Connect the World. Coming up, South Africans are casting their votes in what could be tough

elections for the ruling party. We'll go live to Johannesburg.

Also, enjoy Rio, but keep your eyes open. A warning from a Brazilian drug lord to visitors attending the games. CNN goes inside dangerous territory

next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[11:34:03] KINKADE: In Syria, the government and rebels are accusing each other of carrying out separate chemical gas attacks. This is opposition

footage of an alleged chlorine attack on a residential area in Idlib province. A Russian helicopter had earlier been shot down nearby. Moscow,

which backs the Syrian government, has vehemently denied any chemical attack took place. CNN cannot verify this video which was filmed by anti-

government activists.

Meanwhile, the Syrian government is accusing rebels of carrying out a gas attack on a pro-regime district of Aleppo. Five people were reportedly

killed in that attack.

Well, CNN senior international correspondent Arwa Damon is covering this story for us and

joins us from Istanbul. Arwa, looking at this first gas attack in Idlib province, what are you learning about it?

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERANTIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A according to a photographer for the Idlib Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets, he was saying

that they knew it was chlorine simply because they have been through this before.

What we are hearing is that what activists are saying, what the helicopter fired these cylinders

containing a gas that smelled like chlorine, this photographer saying that the symptoms of those who were affected by it were very similar to those of

chlorine attacks that took place in this very same area in the past. People's eyes were watering. They were having severe trouble breathing and

some of them even went into pretty violent spasms.

At least 30 people, we have heard, including women and children, were affected by this.

The U.S. has also said that it is fairly confident that this was in fact some sort a gas attack. But of course that red line was crossed years ago

when neither the U.S. nor any other organization frankly has taken concrete steps to stop the use by both sides, it would seem, trading accusations of

any sort of chemical weapon in this increasingly bitter conflict.

[11:35:59] KINKADE: And Arwa just 50 kilometers away in Aleppo, another chemical attack there. SAre residents there still attempting to escape, or

is it just too dangerous right now?

DAMON: Yeah, that attack, according to the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency, was carried out by rebels. And it left, as you mentioned earlier,

five people dead, a number of others affected.

Portions of Aleppo have been under siege by the Syrian army, and this was quite a big win for

them. And since then, over the last weeks there has been some pretty intense effort on the part of rebel forces to try to break the siege. And

this has resulted in what has been described as some of the most intense fighting and clashes that anyone has witnessed in the last

five years. And also according to a number of residents in opposition held areas of Aleppo, the most intense aerial bombardment that they have been

under and what this has done is simply a phenomenally exacerbated what is already an incredibly dire humanitarian situation.

The government says that it has opened these humanitarian corridors, problem is only a handful of people are actually using them to flea from

opposition-held areas into government held areas. They don't necessarily trust the regime, but also there needs to be agreement on both sides.

And the other issue that humanitarian organizations are highlighting, Lynda, is that it's not just something that is, yes, very important --

humanitarian corridors to allow people out, but what is more crucial at this stage is to ensure that humanitarian assistance is getting in, because

in these days, things like medicine, water, food in very, very short supply.

KINKADE: Yeah, certainly dire circumstances. Arwa Damon, thanks so much for that update.

Well, South Africans are voting in key regional elections. This seems a difficult test for president Jacob Zuma and his ruling African National

Congress Party. CNN's David McKenzie is following this story in Johannesburg and joins us now live.

David, the ANC has really dominated the political landscape there for the last couple of decades

since the start of South Africa's democracy. Why is support waning now?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, there is a whole lot of challenges facing the ruling ANC, Lynda. And if you come here --

we're in downtown Joburg (ph). The ANC tent is here. They are busy registering people for the last minute voters. It's just over an hour to

go in this municipal election.

You know, generally municipal elections, local elections, even for South Africans, would have been a bit of a snooze in past years, but this time it

is a hard-fought election.

And if you look over here, this is one of the opposition parties, the EFF. They are tapping into popular discontent with the leadership here,

particularly with President Jacob Zuma. You know, five years ago this party wasn't even competing in the local elections. Now they are a real

player in cities like Johannesburg.

Earlier, I spoke to people on the street just after they voted. It really seems to be a choice between legacy and change.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MCKENZIE: You are wearing a Nelson Mandela t-shirt. So, why did you vote today?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mandela fought for this country. We must stand for that. We must stand for that as a country. We must push for the country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is most important is life, basics, you understand, it's what we are waiting for. If you come up with something which you can

help me then I both vote for you, because what I need, I need some services from you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need change, that's right.

MCKENZIE: What change do you need?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Any political party that will bring change, then we can vote for it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE: And one of those parties is the Democratic Alliance, the official

opposition here in South Africa. They are trying to win major centers like Johannesburg, Nelson Mandela Bay and and Tshwane, the capital. Even if

they get close to winning, it would be a serious rebuke of the ANC.

But, you know, the voters haven't spoken yet. They've been voting. The results will come out over several days. And that will be really the proof

whether the ANC, which is still a massive heavyweight, of course -- the biggest party in this country -- can win these local elections across the

board.

[11:40:1] KINKADE: All right, we'll see how that all plays out. David McKenzie, good to have you with us. Thank you.

Well, nearly 500 police officers are participating in a raid in Rio de Janeiro, the operation to break up a drug gang comes just a few days before

the Olympic games.

Our Nick Paton Walsh went inside an area run by Rio's notorious drug gangs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Drive just past one Olympic venue and there, sprawling in the dusk, is the Rio that

Brazil doesn't want you to see.

You're heading with us into a place where police cannot go unless they want a gun battle, a surreal otherworld, where those with guns set the rules.

They agree to talk if we didn't identify them. Going to Junia Boca (ph), says the radio, a place where they deal. At the wheel is Traval (ph); he

passes for a veteran here.

"I didn't think I'd last 'til 20 because of our lifestyle. Now I'm 38. If God allows, one day I'll be 60. It's my dream to leave, to have a quieter

life."

We drive through, off-camera, a crazed, detached world of street parties, open dealing, teenagers in a world without rules or a future. The rest of

Rio speeds past this spot, taking nobody away with it. This is where the deals are done.

Will the Olympics boost business?

"Sell, always sell," he says. "Sell more. That's the point. The quality is good."

WALSH: This is where their world meets the rest of Brazil, a country sometimes of great riches and opportunity that many people here will never

know.

Pick your own sample, all cut from pure in a nearby laboratory. The local drug lord tells us he dreams of leaving to study business. But this is the

business here. Traval (ph) has 11 children by six different women.

"All we want to do is sell our little drug to look after our kids. We don't shove guns in their faces and say, 'Buy.' We just have it available."

What would you say to people coming here for the Olympic Games?

"Enjoy Rio but with your eyes open. Brazil is not prepared. A few from here will be watching -- or there. There will be businessmen, politicians.

Me, I'd like to be there but I can't. The worst thing is that I can't leave. It's what I want, to leave here. I feel like a prisoner."

Walls that keep the grandeur and brilliance of the Games out of reach.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Our Nick Paton Walsh joins us now live from Rio.

Great reporting, Nick, some really incredible access you had there. And I understand not too far from where you are, a major police operation this

morning targeting a drug trafficking gang?

WALSH: And this in a supposedly pacified -- that's the word they use here for areas that

have been brought under police control, often with substantially violent operation. This supposedly in a pacified part of the Shanty towns here

known as Favela known as complex Valamal (ph).

Now, this started this morning apparently after a lengthy 450 police inserting themselves into this area, multiple arrests. But this isn't

obviously the first time this has been a part of daily life here in Brazil. Frequent battles here. You saw in that area we visited how the police have

no writ at all. If they want to go in, as they did one night recently, it has to be in armored cars, normally expecting an exchange of gunfire.

What was so stagger, what we couldn't show you, what we weren't allowed to film on camera was just how young really everybody was there, barely in

their 20s. Young men with automatic rifles standing over large kitchen tables at times with plastic bags of cocaine.

That's the business inside there. It is a society that appears to have its own rules, obviously one of those rules is of the gun. But a place, also

where there was a strange atmosphere, we noticed, of a street party, open use of drugs on the street, loud music, more relaxed than you would expect.

But also a place that lives behind barricades often that police often have to force their way through, a dark side this city whose golden beaches are

behind me, but it does reflect how far the rich are from the poor here -- Lynda.

KINKADE: Absolutely. And we'll have to wait and see if there will be more police operations in the coming days. Nick Paton Walsh, great reporting

thank you.

You are watching Connect the World. Still to come, millions of can Kenyan farmers live in poverty. But we'll show you how one African start-up

offers them a new business model to boost their income.

Plus, land ahoy for the Olympic torch as it arrives in Rio via boat after three months on the road. We'll hear from two CNN reporters who got the

chance to run with it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMIR DAFTARI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Agriculture dominates the Kenyan economy generating one quarter of the country's GDP and employing

around 75 percent of its workforce.

But many farmers here struggle to make ends meet.

YVETTE ONDAATJE (ph), BUSINESS OWNER: There are about 26 million people who depend on agriculture for a living. Out of that, about 70 percent of

them are living below the poverty line.

DAFTARI: Yvette Ondaatje (ph) saw firsthand the obstacles many of the country's subsistence farmers face. She also saw a business opportunity

that could help them.

ONDAATJE (ph): Many small holder farmers lack the access to the roads, and even the means to sell their products into urban markets.

DAFTARI: Yvette set up OJ Green in 2014, a start-up designed to give small holder farmers a chance to compete on a national scale. She is essentially

a middle man, sourcing fresh fruits and vegetables from small scale producers and helping to sell them to urban supermarkets and restaurants.

ONDAATJE (ph): These are indigenous African vegetables. They are names like cow peas. I've got amarand (ph).

DAFTARI: She offers her corporate buyers a wider choice of produce and guarantees her farmers a fair price and regular income.

Mobile connectivity is key to OJ Green's business model. It allows for real time support

for each farmer enabling them to ask questions about the challenges they face and offering training in farming techniques.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE; In case of blight, (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUGE)

DAFTARI: OJ Green team members make regular visits to farms, too, offering hands on assistance from what sort of produce is in demand to what kind of

pesticide to use.

Currently, the company works with around 2,000 farmers, the end goal being to gradually increase their annual income and of course to make a profit

for themselves in the process.

But that's been one of its main challenges.

ONTAATJE (ph): We are definitely growing. The margin is profitable, however we need to get to critical mass. And that's what we're working

towards.

DAFTARI: In two short years, Yvette has shaken up a sector of the Kenyan economy on which millions of people depend. And through her innovative

business model she has demonstrated that even for the smallest player, farming can be a profitable business.

Amir Daftari, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[11:51:52] KINKADE: You're watching Connect the World and this is me, Lynda Kinkade. Welcome back.

While we countdown the hours until Friday's opening ceremony in Rio, CNN's Arwa Damon and Shasta Darlington reflect on what they call a special life

moment: their experience carrying the Olympic torch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're setting up for our first live shot. This is where the torch relay in the City of Curitibga

is going to begin. A lot of different people participating including myself, and Arwa Damon.

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is has been an Olympic preparation process that has been fraught with all sorts of

problems and issues and there are small protests against the government and against one of the sponsors, Nissan.

But despite that, you so see that the crowds have come out. And it's really the kind of the first time that at least I have been able to witness the

sort of festive spirit that one would expect.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

DARLINGTON: It was absolutely amazing. Two hundred meters goes by like a flash and it was really great also talking to the people on the bus right

here, the great stories they have about why they're participating. People who worked with kids in the favelas, people who've really overcome a lot to

be here.

DAMON: We're all waiting around right now to get the torch that we then get to keep as a souvenir. And as Shasta was saying, we were on a bus with some

very amazing people, individuals who are truly inspirational, some of them and the work that they're trying to do to help others.

And hey, we just got to run with the Olympic torch in Brazil. I mean, that's a pretty special life moment.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: What an awesome experience.

Well, in our Parting Shots, we'll introduce you to an Emirati athlete, Amna al Haddad. Now weightlifting is helping her pursue her dreams while also

fighting stereotypes along the way.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AMNA AL HADDAD, WEIGHTLIFTER: I had a lot of negative comments from people. They would say something like you should not be lifting weights,

it's bad for you, or oh, you belong in the kitchen.

I started weightlifting four years ago. It was something that I really fell in love with. It feels great to be strong. It feels great to go and

do what I want. Culturally it is frustrating because as a woman in our world competing in a sport like weightlifting is not very

popular.

I got a lot of rejections, a lot of naysayers. It is a fact that we deal with as women in the Arab world as athletes.

I was annoyed by the comments. But it did not make me rethink what I'm doing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very nice lift. Yes.

HADDAD: I'm someone who likes to think big. And I never like to see obstacles, I like to see opportunities.

I pretty much woke up that day and I saw the news. And I was like oh, my god, it is happening.

When I first start it was only physical strength, but as I grew in the last, you know, four years on this journey I realize that strength is a lot

more than that. It is spiritual. It's the way you think and the way you react to things.

There is something about the sport of weightlifting that empowered me, helped me realize that as a woman in the Arab world I am doing something

big.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Good on her, it's great to see. And Amna al Haddad, of course, isn't only ambitious athlete to keep an eye on this year. Jamaican

sprinter Shelly-Ann Frasser-Pryce is aiming to be the first person to win three straight 100 meter golds, a feat her countryman Usain Bolt would also

like to achieve.

While Michael Phelps hopes to add to his Olympic record of 22 medals.

Well, to learn more about what other Olympians are striving for, you can head to our Facebook page, that's Facebook.com/CNNConnect or you can

connect with me on twitter @LyndaKinkade.

I'm Lynda Kinkade. That was Connect the World. Thanks so much for joining us. Have a good day.

END